Brantwoods’ Cowboy
by lovelyxznv31
Summary: Troy is a young veterinarian that’s going to work at his dead cousin’s farm for the summer, but when he gets there he realizes his cousin’s baby he once held in his arms is now a beautiful grown up girl. TxG story!
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I don't own HSM, only Victor, Valencio, Belle, Brett and Jake. ENJOY! =)_  
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**Brantwoods' Cowboy  
Chapter 1****: Welcome to the Farm**

"Congratulations Troy, you are now a real cowboy"

The words were echoing amusedly through his mind over and over again, spoken by his big brother before he drove away from California in his old red Chevy truck to the barely known land of Brantwood, Wisconsin. He was reading every sign road aloud, afraid to get lost in the middle of nowhere.

Troy Bolton seemed to be the only person driving down the road as he followed the indication the map placed on his lap provided. For a long period of time now he hadn't seen anyone or anything close by, only a few trucks that passed by him on their destination to somewhere. The grey cemented road was the only colorful thing in the very much green landscape. He had studied the neighborhood he was going to and learned that the lots were great to breed cattle and horses.

A low hiss escaped his slightly parted lips as he turned the steering wheel left, swiftly pressing the gas pedal down, accelerating the car further in the empty dirty road. He rolled down the driver's window and sighed pleasurably as the lazy breeze of the sunny day surrounded his body and relaxed completely his mind for a whole minute. His tongue massaged his bottom lip for a few seconds as he felt his insides protesting for water as dehydration seemed to be overcoming his now exhausted body. Using the hand that was not wrapped securely around the steering wheel of his old Chevy, he took his red striped cowboy hat, that was newly purchased when he arrived in Wisconsin, sitting it on the passengers seat as he rubbed the back of his hand across his sweaty forehead.

Dr. Bolton had heard about the weather in Brantwood being intense, but he never thought it would be as intense as he was experiencing right now. His eyes were burning from the lack of sleep and the glare of the sun rising off the hot tarmac. His skin prickled painfully as the warm sweat rolled down his forehead, armpits and six packs. The young veterinarian felt like he was losing liters of liquid as he drove closer to the Montez Farm, his home for the next three months.

Who could have imagined that two weeks ago he would have received a call from Victor Montez, his dead cousin Maria's husband, offering him a job as the farm's veterinarian for the summer? Victor had informed he heard about his work with the Jefferson's ranch animals last year and they were really impressed with his skills of training horses and the way he bred the cattle, so he decided to give it a shot and see if he was still available to help him out throughout summer.

The funny thing was that Troy and the Montez hardly kept in touch all his life, mostly because his mother Demi moved from Wisconsin to California when she met his father Jack Bolton. She was far, far from her sister Nadia that stayed in Brantwood and was Maria's mother. Distance was not the only reason Troy and Maria were never really friends. Being the fourth and last child of the Boltons, he was very young to hang out with his cousin that was twenty years older than him, only his brothers and sister being friends with her when they were younger. All Troy could remember was the only time he visited the farm when he was nine years old and her only daughter, Gabriella, was born. Troy didn't remember how Maria looked in person, nor how she acted, but he had seen himself in a picture his mother had, holding Maria's newly born daughter in his arms after Demi insisted on getting a picture of the both of them because they looked cute together.

It was different, and he couldn't still put in words what he felt right now, going back to the Farm after seventeen years of no contact at all. After Maria's death, after working as a veterinarian for two years already. Troy Bolton was now a man of 26 years old, not a boy anymore. He felt weird being there, but he had been through a lot to gain the trust of the old farmers that hired him to deal with their expensive horses and cattle. He was a great vet and was embracing his future with his arms, collecting the good things that he earned due to hard work and dedication all these years. No strange sensation or anything would make him give up right now, because he deserved this work. He had earned it.

Keith Urban's powerful voice was softly singing to him, the once tone of voice that worked immediately almost as lullaby to him, agitating more his already stiffed with anxiety body. He was not only nervous, Troy was freaking out. He had no idea of what to expect from the Farm, the horses and his new Boss. Nor Jack or Demi had much to say about Victor Montez and they could only remember him being a very serious person, still with a nice heart.

He snapped out of his thoughts as he pressed the break brusquely before almost hitting a cow that had stopped in the middle of the road. The animal seemed to be glad with its time doing nothing, laying down on the hot cement and enjoying the sun, as if it was not in danger of being hit by a truck.

"You lie down on the street in California and you'll be a burger in no time" he mumbled to himself as he took a deep breath, trying to ease his heart beat that pounded against his ribcage due to the almost accident. Troy unbuttoned the top button of his navy blue, gray and red plaid shirt, rubbing the thick sweat away from his neck and collarbone. His pale hand travelled up to his face, massaging it against his forehead as he waited patiently for the cow to move.

"Come on, get out of the way" he tilted his head to the side, staring blankly as the cow seemed to ignore him completely. Shaking his head and smirking amusedly at the animal's behavior, he smacked his fist against the steering wheel, pressing lightly the honk, grinning as the black and white cow finally stood up, moving slowly out of the road.

The loud noise of his old car's engine roared to life again and he continued his way down the road, accelerating again as his mind slightly recognized the wooden fence he passed through. He was already inside the Montez Farm.

Troy drove the entryway slowly, afraid he could meet some other rebellious animal that decided to walk away from its family and just stroll around the farm. He felt his heart jump as he spotted a red large stud farm behind the main house, the place where he would be working the most, looking forward to see horses that hid there.

He took a deep breath and eased off the accelerator, his car moving gradually slower as he approached the main house, stopping the red truck in front of the big white two story house that was beautifully surrounded by trees and brilliantly green bushes. The porch was nicely decorated with wooden arm chairs and a swing that looked very comfortable. The front door of the house was partly opened and a very big brown dog was peeking through it.

He observed for a whole minute as the dog wagged its tail and greeted the short middle aged man that wore dark jeans, blue t-shirt and a cowboy hat, not as new as his was, much more used probably. Troy hopped out of his truck swiftly with his hat securely under his arm and shut the old Chevy's heavy door loud enough to bring the man's attention from the bear-sized-dog to him.

"May I help you?" the slight Spanish accent lingered in the air as he watched the man frown deeply as he rested his elbows on the porch's edge.

"Uhm… yeah" Troy put his hat back to his head, pretending he was a professional cowboy, walking slowly, but confidently towards the chubby dark mustached man, "I'm Troy Bolton. The new veterinarian..."

"Oh, you came right in time" the man grinned, raising his hands in the air as if he was thanking God for Troy's arrival. He turned around, jumping the three porch steps and landing on the ground perfectly, as if he still had a body of a eighteen year old boy instead of the 50 something he appeared to be and motioned with his hand for Troy to follow him, something he automatically did, "Come Brett"

Troy considered reminding him his name was not Brett, but as he heard steps, he looked over his shoulder and noticed the man was in fact not talking to him, but the huge brown dog that followed them promptly. The Tibetan Mastiff that accompanied them had to be the biggest dog he had even seen his entire life, mostly because back in California people enjoyed small dogs the most. The almost bear dog looked at him with its medium sized brown eyes, his wide black nose with open nostrils stiffing the air frenetically and its V-shaped ears slightly rose up at every new step he took to get to Troy.

Troy smirked when the dog passed by him, brushing its long, thick and wavy fur covered big body against his leg, running fast to where the middle aged Spanish man was taking them. He couldn't help but notice that every time the dog touched its heavy paw to the floor, it felt slightly like an earthquake. Troy was probably overreacting, but for a city boy, things were very different around here.

"I'm Valencio by the way. I work in the farm too" the man looked over his shoulder as if he was certifying himself that Troy was right behind, "We have a labor, Dr. Bolton. It's Miss Gabriella's dog. This big boy there" he pointed to Brett that waited for them in front of the red barn, "Got the lady pregnant"

"What's its breed?" he asked curiously as his pace matched the middle aged man's and Valencio laughed lightly as Troy took off the cowboy hat again and ran a hand through his damp with sweat hair.

"A beautiful Kuvasz named Belle" the Spanish informed as a matter-of-fact, opening the gate to the old barn, letting Troy peek through before he walked inside, being followed by Brett. "Miss Montez is out at a friend's house, she'll be so disappointed she's missing the birth"

"Maybe you should go call her" Troy replied, spotting the white as snow dog curled up in a blanket in the far corner of the barn, whimpering loudly as it tried its best to find a comfortable position to deliver the pups, "I'll take care of her now"

"'Kay, Doc. There are clean towels here" he pointed to the old chair placed beside the entry of the barn, "I'll go call Miss Gabriella and Mr. Montez"

Troy nodded his head up and down slowly and watched as Valencio disappeared through the door, commanding the brown dog to stay where it was. Brett barked just once, as if it was a confirmation that he understood the man's orders and sat down, observing the young doctor again.

He breathed through his nose as he moved his attention from the male dog to the white female that contorted in pain. Taking slow steps towards Belle, carefully not to scare the mom-to-be, Troy crouched down in front of her and patted her head gently, letting his large hands slide across her huge head and rub behind her ear soothingly, "Hey girl. How are you doing?"

The almond-shaped brown eyes of the dog looked pleadingly up at him and its V-shaped ears perked at the husky sound of his voice. Troy smiled, letting his hand caress from the top of Belle's head and midway down her back. The dog whined sadly and dropped its heavy head painfully, her tail only wagging once or twice before stopping completely. "I imagine it hurts, but you'll be good in a few hours"

Belle whimpered loudly and moved again and Troy decided it was better to back off and give her space to give birth when she found it was the better time. He walked to the old chair that had the clean towels, collected it and sat down, observing as the dog initiated the action of delivery, getting the pups to breathe and cleaning the slick fur with her tongue when they were completely out of her body.

Throughout the whole birth process Troy watched carefully, in case the dog needed any help or the pups had any kind of trouble to breathe on its own. A whole hour passed by quickly till he could breathe in relief as the last pup whimpered to life.

"Oh Brett… seems you are a dad of five" he laughed lightly and the dog barked its approval at the sound of its name, rubbing his huge head against the side of Troy's body tenderly. He patted his head and smiled, "Congratulations big boy"

Standing up, he collected the clean blanket Valencio had stopped by to give him as he informed Gabriella was on her way to watch the delivery, and walked towards the new mom and the pups. The Kuvasz growled darkly as he got too close to the babies and he raised both hands in the air, showing there was nothing to worry about, "Calm down Belle. I'm only going to help you out, alright?" he bent down and placed the blanket and towels on the floor, staring at the dog again, "Not stealing your babies, 'kay? I don't want bear sized little monsters in my house"

Troy quickly put all the pups on the clean blanket, curling them up in the towels, being a hero to the last as he saved it before Belle could roll over in an attempt to stand up and move to the new blanket with her babies. He watched as the last puppy writhed in his hands, trying to breath on its own, turning slightly purple as its lungs couldn't work correctly due to the lack of proper stimulus provided by Belle.

He sat down swiftly, placing the pup on his lap as he unbuttoned his plaid shirt, taking it off his body rapidly, rubbing the soft material gently against the puppy's lengthwise. He threw his hat aside, flicking his hair out of his eyes as he repeated the process, harder this time, getting anxious about fact the pup didn't seem to respond the stimulation.

"Damn it… breathe, come on" he mumbled to himself, massaging its back slowly, pressing his fingertips on each side of the tiny body, rubbing his thumbs back and forth a few times. It was like decades passed till Troy heard the urgent breath of air the puppy took and how the little one in between his hands seemed to relax slightly as air came in and out of his lungs, showing it could handle itself on its own. Running one hand through his hair, he squeezed his eyes shut and cussed under his breath, "Shit…"

"Here Belle, one more" Troy put the last baby near the other's and watched as the mom nursed them all, licking, sniffing and rubbing her head against them affectionately. Brett tried to lie down next to the female dog, but she growled and he knew she was protecting her babies. Troy grabbed the big brown dog by the blue collar that was wrapped around his neck and backed him off, "Naw Brett, give her time"

Brett once again seemed to understand the command and sat down near the barn's door, waiting for Troy to join him. He massaged his shoulders slowly and rolled it back and forth as he stretched his arms, easing the tension that the last pup provided to him. He checked Belle one more time and turned around with his now very dirty plaid shirt under his arm, sweat rolling down from his neck to his abs and getting lost in the encounter of his pelvis and dark jeans. Troy let Brett get out of the barn first, afraid he could find a way to go back to Belle and start a war and joined the dog, closing the door securely behind him.

Walking back to his car and the main house, Troy spotted Valencio talking to a Latino looking man, slender but very tall. The man's hair was dark like the night and his beard covered most of his face. He wore almost the same clothes Troy was using when he first got to the Farm, plaid blue shirt and jeans, but instead of the white converses he was dressed in, the man used brown cowboy boots.

Although Troy was only 9 years old when he saw Victor Montez for the last time, he was a hundred percent sure that the man standing in front of him was his dead cousin's husband. Victor nodded in greet and his lips curled in a half-smile, "How was it doc?"

"There are five pups" Troy said certainly, "All of them very healthy"

The Latino's hands touched together as he clapped loud, cheering contently, "Ella will be so happy about this" he offered his hand and introduced himself properly, "I'm Victor Montez"

"I'd shake your hand…" Troy began calmly, "If I wasn't covered in blood and placenta"

Victor laughed warmly and he couldn't help but wonder where the hell his parents took the idea of Maria's husband being a serious man. He seemed very talkative and social right now. "Maybe later then" he promised, patting Troy's bare back, "I can't believe you are that big now, boy. Last time I saw you, you were that size" he lowered his hand to his hip to emphasize his point of Troy being really small, "How old were you?"

"I was 9"

He squeezed Troy's shoulder affectionately, "Maria would be happy to know you're back to the Farm after so long. Can you believe Gabriella still has the picture your mother took with you holding her?"

Troy blushed several tones of red as Victor talked about his daughter having a photo of the two of them. He couldn't understand why a teenager would want a picture of her as a new born being held by someone she couldn't even remember about.

"Oh" he laughed awkwardly, "that's cool I guess"

"She's been dying to meet you" Victor informed as a matter-of-fact, turning around to look at Valencio, "Did you call Ella?"

He observed as the short man nodded his head slowly, his dark thick hair never moving, not even once as he grinned proudly, raising his hand and pointing forward. Victor turned around and smiled as well, giving Troy's shoulder a squeeze again. "That's Ella"

Turning around as he heard the sound of engine, Troy took note of what would be probably one of the most beautiful things in the state of Wisconsin: his cousin Gabriella Montez.

The girl was hopping out of the car as if she was a Goddess, her slender body covered with a sunny red dress, her feet decorated with a simple sandal. She had dark waves that were perfectly placed around her shoulders and midway down her back, contrasting pleasurably with the olive tone of her skin. Her legs were toned and he quickly linked it with the information his mother had given him about Gabriella being very sporty.

How was it possible for a girl that was only 17 years old to look so mature and beautiful? He couldn't help but wonder how Victor would deal with the guys that Gabriella probably knocked to the floor with her confident presence.

Before Troy could see who was inside the car that she walked out, the person had accelerated and disappeared through the gate. Gabriella turned around after waving the person off and spotted her dad, running towards the group of people gathered in front of the main house, "Is Belle okay?"

"She's fine" Victor replied, wrapping one arm around his daughter's neck and giving her a tender hug, "Dr. Bolton helped her out. She has five pups now"

Gabriella moved her light brown eyes away from her father's chest and looked up at the guy standing beside Valencio, a lazy smile spreading on her puffy lips, "I can't believe you are the guy in the picture"

"I can't believe you are the baby I was holding in the picture" Troy said truthfully, smiling in return, "You grew up a lot"

She looked at him up and down, nodding her head, "Ditto"

Victor laughed loud and Valencio smirked, Gabriella grinning as she localized Troy's dirty shirt under his arm, knowing it was probably due to her dog's labor, "Thanks for helping Belle"

"It was my job" Troy shrugged his shoulders, but felt tingles when she brushed his muscular arm up and down once, gratefully.

"Come on Ella, let's see the pups" Victor suggested, hugging her side tenderly and pulling her towards the barn. "Valencio, take Troy's things to the back house" he yelled over his shoulder as his voice got distant. He watched as father and daughter raced to the barn, laughing loud and bumping into each other playfully.

"She's beautiful, don't you think?" the Spanish accent snapped him out of his trance and he nodded his head slowly, smiling a bit, "She looks exactly like Mrs. Montez"

"Oh"

Troy followed Valencio as he walked to his old Chevy, collecting his suitcase from the bed, shaking his head when Troy offered to help. The man motioned for Troy to walk with him, as he made his way to where he was certain would be the back house, "You already done too much, Doc"

They walked the dirty way to the back of the terrain, till he was able to see in the distance a dark wooden small cottage on top of a small hill. Troy smiled contently as he noticed he'd be alone most of the time when in the house and he loved the fact he could rest and think without too much noise. "There's a river down the way" Valencio informed, pointing to the trees gathered in the back of the cottage, "If you feel like exploring"

Putting his suitcases on the floor, the Spanish man unlocked the door and twisted the doorknob slightly to the left, pushing the door open with a barely audible creak. He motioned with his head for Troy to get inside first, smiling anxiously. Troy walked through the door and stepped into the little living room. Letting his eyes wander around, he scanned from the washed wooden floors to the dirty green couch and the small book shelf in the corner of the room. There was a huge painting of a horse on top of a brown fireplace and a plant beside it.

Troy turned slowly around, already getting used to the soft _slap_ sound that came from the floor as his footsteps made contact with the wood. He studied the other two doors, one that led to a small bathroom that was only big enough to fit a pot, a bathtub and a sink, and the other that led to what would be his room. He liked the big bed covered with a green blanket and as he traced with his hand the mattress he stated it was comfortable enough to his taste. Placed opposite from the bed was what seemed to be a 60's three doors wardrobe, carefully rebuilt. There was a white arm chair near it and a bedside table with a lamp.

"What do you think, Doc?" Valencio asked from behind him and Troy turned around, smiling slyly, "It's cozy"

The Spanish grinned, nodding his head, "You'll eat in the main house with Mr. Montez and Miss Gabriella" his small hand closed around Troy's arm, pulling him to the living room's window, "You can see the whole farm from here" he touched his index finger to the glass and laughed lightly, "And there with Miss Gabriella is my boy Jake. They are great friends, but I'm sure my son has a crush on her" he looked over his shoulder, "He rides horses too. I think you'll like him"

"I bet I will, Valencio" Troy said softly, trying to continue the conversation, but as he peeked through the window and his eyes caught Gabriella's presence playing with Brett, Victor and a tall dark haired teenager, he couldn't help but find extremely difficult to focus on something else than her. "Does Gabriella like your son too?"

"I don't know" he laughed lightly, "But they are always together, so who knows"

Troy turned around and smiled, "Yeah, who knows"

* * *

The food was delicious and throughout the dinner, Victor had explained everything about the Farm to his new veterinarian and confessed that he hired Troy to take care of a very particular horse that was impossibly stubborn. He didn't know if the fact the horse had succeeded on being rebellious with another three trainers or if he was Gabriella's new competition horse that was making him uneasy, but he didn't think it would be a good idea to put such petite and fragile looking girl on top of a furious animal. God only knew how things could turn out if the horse decided to act on its own and not follow Troy's commands. He didn't want to be the one responsible for hurting his cousin's daughter.

Victor had explained Troy that he was not worried about Gabriella, because she was a very good rider, so he shouldn't worry as well. Being the talkative man that his parents didn't warn him about, Victor continued speaking, telling everything he could to make Troy comfortable around him and Gabriella, wanting the young veterinarian to feel as family. Troy had learned that Maria died in a car accident two years ago, when she was driving from Madison to Brantwood. Victor went on with his life as normally as he could, mostly because 15 year old Gabriella at the time needed him the most. Now the hard times were behind, Gabriella was doing well at school again, going back to ride horses, the farm was prospering.

The strange thing was, that even after a lot of time not seeing Victor and Gabriella and for the first time in two years that he was a graduated veterinarian and worked at different places for the summer, Troy felt like he was finally home. He could get used to being at the Montez Farm and he definitely could get used to being around Victor and Gabriella.

* * *

_Just cuz I really wanna try a cowboy story. :]_


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything._

**Brantwoods' Cowboy****  
Chapter 2: Forever My Crush**

Gabriella Montez was never one to care much about guys.

She loved the species, mainly only as friends though, she was never interested in dating anyone, even though she was a teenager and she was supposed to have her hormones at insane speed. Once or twice she thought about having a boyfriend, mostly because her best friends would always mock her for never kissing anyone at age 17. She had several options to go out, including one of her very good guy friends Jake – but she had agreed a long time ago that she would only go on a date with someone she was in love with.

She wanted to share her first kiss with a guy she thought it was worth it and not a one night only thing. She didn't want to be treated like girls from her school, used and threw on the garbage when they were not fun anymore. Obviously Gabriella knew that her untouched way of living was a huge turn on to guys her age, but she was strict when it came to her beliefs. She would wait for someone that she loved.

Embarrassment was never a problem.

Riding a horse was one of her mother's favorite things in the world, and that was not the only thing Gabriella wanted to copy from Maria's lifestyle to her own life. Her mother had waited for the perfect man too. She was 21 when Victor moved to town and introduced himself at a rodeo party. They fell in love deeply and six months later, they were married. There was never regret for waiting so long.

Gabriella grew up listening to her mother tell her story over and over again, and she was always so proud of it that she wanted the same for her. In the beginning, she thought what she felt for Jake was love, but then, it was like something inside of her clicked and she just saw him as her friend, even a brother. It wasn't him yet.

When she was around 10 years old, her mother decided on a Christmas Eve that it was a good moment to tell her everything about her family. Maria told stories and showed pictures. One of them, with a beautiful young boy holding a baby, caught her attention. Not an ordinary baby, it was herself being held by a cute little boy. Her mother didn't know much to tell her, only that the boy holding her was Troy Bolton, her cousin and Gabriella's second cousin.

Troy Bolton was the very first boy Gabriella got interested in, probably because he looked like someone famous. In the picture, he was staring down at her and his chestnut floppy hair fell in his eyes as grabbed his bottom lip between his very white teeth, as if he concentrated hard just to hold her. It was simply adorable. She had liked everything in him, from the Power Rangers t-shirt to the fact he wore Basketball shoes. Ten year old Gabriella developed a huge crush on her second cousin and to her mother it was just something funny to hear, a kid's illusion, equaling nothing to worry about.

Until one day Gabriella asked if she could marry Troy when she was a big girl.

Maria had been severe when she explained that family didn't marry, but when Gabriella defended the point of people that belonged to the same family in the Bible marrying each other and the fact that she saw on TV that there were cultures that preferred to marry between each other, her mother lost her word. Saying no and stomping her feet on the floor stubbornly, Maria turned around and went back to her domestic chores.

Obviously Gabriella wouldn't give up that easily.

She went to her father to ask for a second opinion - something she always did, partly because she was a very intelligent and curious little girl, partly because she was decided to marry her second cousin – and what he said had filled her tummy with butterflies that were still present nowadays. Victor had informed her, in between laughs, of course, that second cousins were allowed to marry and if Troy was her destiny, then they would be together one day.

Maria was mad at her husband for days and Gabriella could remember her mother giving her daddy the silent treatment, but she didn't care, that was not the thing on her mind anymore as selfish as it could sound. For a child that saw Troy as a prince charming and herself as a princess (and she blamed Victor on that till today) she couldn't be happier about being allowed to be with him when she got older.

When she was 13 years old and Taylor started picking on her about guys, Gabriella was forced to admit that she was saving herself for her second cousin, that she was in fact willing to preserve all her kisses to him if he wanted. Her friend thought it was creepy to marry family and she found herself late at night Googling everything about marriage between cousins, just to prove her best friend that it was not a bad thing, not sinful. Knowing it was allowed to marry a second cousin in US was enough to make Taylor back off her accusations and the peace returned to their friendship.

Yet, passed all the barriers of family issues, it still was crazy to like someone she never knew, someone she never talked with. Someone that was much older than her. But she conformed herself with the thought of being impossible to choose on who to have a crush on. Gabriella used to tell that crushing on Troy, was like crushing on every other celebrity teenager – they were too old for her and impossible to be with.

That was exactly what he was to her, only a dream.

After her life turned upside down due to her mother's accident and then death, Victor came home one night with the order to take everything that was from Maria from the house and donate to several organizations, in an attempt to clean the environment and make them move on, something that seemed so hard to do at the moment. Looking through the pictures box before it was locked in the garage Gabriella found the old picture of her and Troy. Consulting Victor and having his approval to have the photo was crucial to her recovery, because somehow the photograph of the stranger second cousin made her feel better about everything that was going on her life at that moment… made her feel protected. As though he was there with her.

For two years now, the old photo was securely hidden under her mattress. Not that she looked at it every night, it was mostly the idea of being able to take a look at it and feel better in case she needed his help. She still liked to think of him as her prince charming, the prince that saved her every night when she was in mourning and one day would come to rescue her on a white horse.

However, even with the several wedding proposals she done to the picture when she was younger, with the constant staring at it throughout hard moments, she never thought about being physically intimate with Troy, and the bigger reason to that was that deep inside, she knew she'd never seen him, he would always be only on her mind. She didn't want to fantasize with someone she would never have.

But now, and she had to thank her father later for this, everything changed drastically.

The prince charming was there and he was better than she always hoped and expected him to be. He was just unbelievably amazing and she couldn't help but crush on him again. At least now she was crushing on someone that was there in person, not an old picture anymore. That felt way better and less psycho.

Troy Bolton was definitely sent from above, she was certain of it now. There was something incredible on the way he rolled the sleeves of his plaid shirt when he was too hot, or how his large hands worked, or the fact that he constantly squeezed his bottom lip between his teeth when he was concentrated that had her hypnotized. When he laughed he automatically blushed and not only his face, but the sound of his laugh was so cute as well that she wanted nothing but to stay there watching his cheeks flush and his laugh fill her ears over and over again.

The way he ran his fingers through his hair was like magic. When he moved, talked or just breathed affected directly Gabriella's body, as though they were connected, wrapped together with an invisible rope that was so tight it was impossible to break free.

It was something different than what she ever felt around boys. Her body felt weird, like she craved to see him every second, talk to him, assure herself that he was happy when he was around her – not that they had much contact, only during dinner, truthfully. When he smiled at her, her cheeks flushed several tones of red. When they brushed arms accidentally on the way to the dinner room, she felt butterflies and the hair on her body raised.

Although she never felt something similar to this, she loved the feeling. It was unknown, yet so pleasurable she couldn't imagine her life without it anymore. She didn't even want to consider her life without it anymore. What she felt for Troy, was developing from a simple crush to something bigger and stronger that she couldn't still put in words, but she'd find a way to do it at the right moment. Now, Gabriella was just thankful her prince charming found his way back to her.

If only he liked her as well…

"Your cousin has to be the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my 18 years of existence, Gabster" the pale hand travelled to the blond covered head, the slender fingers running through the soft mass of hair gently and flirtatiously at the same time the pinkish lip was being grabbed between the much white teeth ravenously, "I mean, seriously. He is dreamy, do you know that?"

Why, just why her best friends had to gush so proudly about the guy in front of them? Why they had to stare and talk about him as if he was not meant to be her prince charming? Why, why, why? Didn't they show any respect for other person's man? Why not stare at the beautiful blue and cloudless sky? Why not talk about the green grass or Belle's lovely pups that rested peacefully around the bigger dog under the tree with them?

Anything would be better than paying attention to the guy she considered hers already.

"First," Gabriella raised her finger, counting, "He is my second cousin" she corrected impatiently, "Secondly, I get you feel comfortable enough to talk about men in front of us, but it's just creepy Ryan. Troy is not a touristic attraction, he is a person"

_How hypocrite you sound when you're doing the same, _her mind accused and she thought to herself as if she was replying to her head, _At least I'm not staring at him like he's something to eat. _Gabriella rubbed one hand across her face and shook her head slightly. If crushing on a picture wasn't weird enough, she had to talk to herself. Great way to impress Troy.

The blond rolled his eyes and Taylor, the dark skinned girl sitting beside Gabriella on the red and white towel that they had placed on the soft grass after deciding to let he pups sunbath a bit, shook her head promptly, "Gabs I agree with you he's not a piece of meat and that Ryan is just a man-whore," she added bitterly and Ryan scoffed, "But he is handsome… really, really handsome"

Gabriella sighed tiredly at her best friends' commentaries. She didn't want to sit there and hear what they thought about Troy the whole day. It was wrong at a big level and they had been doing the same thing for a week now, since he got to the farm. Yes, he was handsome, yes he was very nice and yes, she had a big crush on him, but that didn't mean she wouldn't respect Troy as a person. She wouldn't eat him with her eyes, as hard as it would be not to do it.

"He is a person, guys. Can't you see that?" she threw her hands in the air, exasperatedly, "Isn't it harassment or something like that to lust on him the way you two are doing?"

The blond teenager that wore a pink polo shirt and khaki shorts waved her off, "You are so selfish, woman. We're not allowed to drool over him but you are?"

"I am not drooling"

"Oh you are, Gab" Ryan said sarcastically, "You're gonna drown in your own drool in the end of the summer"

"Whatever" shaking her head, she concentrated her gaze at one of the pups, the smallest of them all that had just yawned and was stretching cutely. She smiled lightly as the pup shook its head to wake up properly, losing its balance and falling forward.

As she was about to reach for the puppy, Taylor's hand closed around her forearm, her nails digging into Gabriella's sensible skin, "Oh… my… God" she squealed, covering her mouth with her hand as she breathed deeply in and out, "What… the… fuck… is… he… doing…! Gabs!"

Gabriella opened her mouth to inform she was hurting her, but Ryan placed one pale hand on her olive skin, turning her face to where they wanted her to stare. At the moment her eyes followed their gaze, she felt like the force of the whole world had just collapsed on her.

"Oh… my" her mouth dropped open at the exact moment Troy Bolton began moving in slow motion in front of her eyes, as if she was watching a very good movie. Everything around her seemed to be froze; she could no longer hear her friends, the pups, anything. It was only the two of them. Gabriella observed as he put the garden hose pistol he was previously bathing the horse on the grass and took off his cowboy hat. She saw as his lips curled up in a small smile as he talked to the big brown animal in front of him, as if they were best friends.

Troy's large hand held a fistful of the bottom of his navy t-shirt, pulling it swiftly over his head. As fast as she could notice, his shirt came off and Gabriella's eyes widened. She didn't want to be staring like an idiot, but she knew it was impossible to move her gaze away from the perfect Adonis in front of her. She almost felt tears welling at the edge of her vision because she refused to blink and miss the show.

Her eyes travelled from his floppy chestnut hair and the way he flickered it from his eyes, to his muscular shoulders and wow… Did she say six pack? Troy had an incredible six pack that Gabriella was sure could be used also as an ironing board. She breathed deeply in and out of her lungs, releasing slowly the air she didn't know she was holding for so long. The loud noise of her heart pounding against her ribcage was so embarrassing and it seemed to be echoing through the entire farm, but she didn't have the strength to slow down his effect on her.

She kept studying his muscular and impressive body hungrily, every now and then licking on her bottom lip as her mouth became automatically dry with every breath he took. She had no idea what was happening with her body, she only knew she had a powerful urge to touch those very nice abs of his. She needed to certify herself he was not a dream. But she wasn't even sure that a beauty like this existed.

Troy bent down, cupping one hand to his right knee, collecting the garden hose pistol again and wetting his hair, shoulders and chest. Shaking his head firmly from one side to another, he stood up straight again, running a hand through his damp hair before putting the cowboy hat again. Only the hat, never the shirt, as her brain seemed to bring out. He drank the water and she wished, for only a minute that she could be the one wiping the water away from his chin, not his own hand.

"Jesus…" she mumbled quietly to herself, as she felt sweat rolling down from her stomach and forehead. Her body was not hot anymore, it was in flames. Gabriella was feeling extremely vulnerable right now, and she knew it was his own fault. His effect on her was as powerful as a volcano, threatening to explode any minute inside of her. As she watched him, she felt a warm sensation between her legs and she could literally feel like she was going to pass out.

"He is, uhm…" she struggled for the right words, afraid if she spoke too much the moan that was stuck in the back of her throat of watching him wet and bare chested would escape her lips and her friends would mock her throughout her entire life. More than they already did.

She blinked twice as she felt her head spinning insanely fast and swallowed, "Working…?"

"It's wow, right Gab?" Taylor's distant laugh filled her ears at the same time her vision became blurry and dark, "Gabriella, you're okay?"

She heard Taylor's scream and then Ryan's voice, "Gabs? Gabs, you're alright? Oh… she's turning green, Taylor. Call someone"

Gabriella's whole body became numb and she felt like she couldn't hold it together any longer, so she fell back, not even feeling the pain when her head collapsed with the grass. This was so embarrassing. Why did she have to be that weak?

"Troy!"

"No, not him… please" she mumbled weakly, trying to hold firmly to the last coherent, logical line of thought that rushed through her head, "He can't see me like this…"

"Troy!" Taylor yelled louder, "It's Gabriella, come here!"

And then it all went black.

* * *

"She's waking up…" Troy muttered over his shoulder to a very worried Taylor McKessie and a smirking Ryan Evans. Both teenagers nodded as he pretended to be the calmer one in the room. Truth was, he was probably the most nervous person in there. His hands were still trembling slightly even after five minutes that she was lying down safely on her bed, breathing normally again, the soft tone of pink reappearing in her cheeks and a few incomprehensible murmurs escaping her previously pale puffy lips.

Gabriella was definitely alive but he still couldn't find the strength to stand up from the edge of her bed and back off. For some unknown reason knowing she still wasn't awake was suffocating him, intoxicating his inside with worry and pain. She moved slightly and he held his breath, narrowing his eyes nervously as she raised one hand slowly to her face, rubbing her eyes and face lazily.

"Gabi…" Ryan's voice squealed in delight as she opened her eyes partially, closing it quickly after only a second. Her friends stormed to the bed, covering the girl from Troy's view and he reluctantly stood up, informing he'd be back in a few minutes with a glass of water for Gabriella.

She opened her eyes again, slower this time, groaning loud as her head still spun a bit. Taylor grinned from the edge of the bed and Ryan that had just kneeled beside her, giggled pleasurably. Her blond friend's hand touched her forehead gently and she rolled her eyes, pushing his hand away, "I'm fine now…"

"Faking faint is a great move to make the man carry you in his arms" Ryan grinned, showing all his glistering teeth, raising his hand, "High five"

"I was not faking, Ry" she protested lowly, "I really fainted"

"Ohh…" Taylor patted her leg tenderly, "How adorkable is that? You fainted because you saw Troy shirtless. So cute"

"It so screams virgin" Ryan shook his head, laughing lightly, "Are you gonna pass out when you see a guy naked?"

Gabriella blushed, "Ry…"

"It's not every guy, Ryan. It's Troy-second-cousin-Bolton" Taylor teased, high fiving Ryan swiftly. "Ohh, don't pout, Gab!"

"Maybe Troy would love to see her pouting… Did you his face when she fainted?"

"Guys!" Gabriella half-yelled, "Can't you two stop talking about me as if I was not present?"

"Sorry…"

She nodded her head up and down slowly, placing both of her hands on each side of her body against the mattress, pushing her body up till she was sitting on the bed. Shaking her head a bit as though she tried to make her brain work again, she breathed deeply. "Right… now that you two stopped mocking me" she cocked an eyebrow, "Tell me about Troy saving me. How was that?"

"Oooh" Ryan clapped his hands together, opening his mouth to start the story, but the dark skinned girl, placing a hand rapidly to the side of his face, pushed him back on the floor, not even laughing when he fell and protested, starting the story herself, "It was so cute Gabs. When I screamed his name he was so worried. He forgot about the horse, he forgot about his shirt and ran so fast towards you, scooping you in his strong arms as if he was a prince charming…"

Gabriella's heart raced really fast at the sound of 'prince charming' coming from her friend's lips. It was beating so fast and that that she literally felt her chest hurt. He really acted like a hero then. Even after two years he had helped her for the first time when Maria died, Troy was still there.

And shirtless this time.

So, so awesome.

"And then he grabbed you in his arms and brought you to the house. Ryan and I never saw someone run as fast as he runs; it's like his an athlete, seriously"

Her heart was beating so quick Gabriella felt scared this time. It was like it was pounding out of rhythm. Was that what a person on the edge of having a stroke felt? Probably. Was it even normal? She was sure not, because she never felt like this before. It was like she could feel the blood draining from the extremities of her heart and pounding against her ribcage. It seemed to be similar with the feeling of anxiety, but it was stronger than that. She had no reason to be anxious about, it wasn't like what Taylor was telling her was a fairy tale and Troy had woken her up with a kiss.

_Oh a kiss._

_On the lips… that'd be good._ Shaking her head she commanded her mind to stop thinking about it. Since when did she turn into a teenager with crazy, naughty hormones?

"You're green again…" Taylor stated awkwardly and Ryan cupped the edge of the bed to scan Gabriella closer, "Uh oh… she's gonna faint, Tay"

_Breathe, Gabriella, _she murmured to herself, breathing in and out of her lungs slowly, ignoring the tingling sensation in her legs and arms as she heard footsteps getting louder and louder. She closed her eyes and squeezed her bottom lip between her teeth. _Don't faint. _

"I think she's gonna pass out again, Troy" Taylor's distant voice saying his perfect name made her heart speed up, if that was even humanly possible. She waited for a minute to assure she wouldn't black out or vomit and reopened her eyes as the bed groaned with the new weight on it. Her brown orbs locked with the intense gaze of his blue eyes and she felt her whole body shudder involuntary. Troy quickly put the glass of water of her bedside table and rubbed her arms up and down, soothing her cold sweating body.

"Ella, what are you feeling?"

She ignored the giggles from Ryan and tuned out what Taylor was saying, only concentrating on his large and cold hands warming her body with the friction. She breathed through her mouth and clenched her hands into fists, trying her best to stop shaking. "I… nothing" she shook her head, "I feel fine now Troy"

"Are you sure? Don't you need to see a doctor? Maybe I should call Victor"

"No" Gabriella said too quickly, making him jump slightly in the same place, "I'm fine, seriously"

Troy narrowed his eyes suspiciously, but then his expression relaxed, "Did you eat today?"

"Yes…"

"Hmm… you sure?"

"Yes"

"Hmm" he repeated, rubbing the side of his neck as he studied her, "Okay…"

Gabriella bit her bottom lip slowly as she observed his concentrated look and the sexy frown that formed on his face as he watched her intently. He took his hands off her and she followed his arms as it fell swiftly to the side of his body.

"You put a shirt…" she mumbled quietly and Troy raised a single eyebrow amusedly, "What?"

"I…" she swallowed nervously, blushing deeply. "Nothing"

"Okay…" he muttered, nodding his head slightly. Smiling a half-smile he licked his bottom lip, "You're really feeling better already? Cuz I abandoned your dad's horse and I should definitely go for it…"

_Oh, no. Don't go, stay, _her heart protested and she frowned deeply, trying to look as sick as she could, "I still feel a bit dizzy. Can you stay with me till I feel better?"

Of course he could, Troy was not the one to leave her alone when she was constantly fainting. He still needed to know why she was feeling so weak, maybe Gabriella was lying about eating. He studied her petite body and yeah, she was slender, but not the person that seemed to skip meals. Maybe it was the weather. He had almost fainted himself as he bathed Victor's horse.

Brantwood was like an inferno today, probably hotter than 100 degrees. He could be overreacting, but he felt like he needed to be naked the whole time, his clothes were a really uncomfortable piece of material and seemed unnecessary when exposed to the Farm's sun.

He stared at Gabriella again and she was still blushing for some unknown reason, looking so fragile and vulnerable. For a day at least, Troy wanted to know what the heck she was thinking about that was changing the olive tone of her skin to a soft tone of pink. He shook his head slightly, maybe it was a really bad idea to want to get inside of a teenager mind. They could be so intense sometimes.

Looking over his shoulder as he felt drowning in silence, Troy stated that Gabriella's best friends were no longer in the room with them. The door was half-open and the hall in front of her room ghostly empty.

_What the heck?_

"Do your friends always disappear when you feel faint?"

"Naw…" Gabriella laughed quietly, playing with her fingers, "Just sometimes"

He nodded and she found courage to speak again, craving to know him better, "Are you enjoying working here?"

"Yeah… it's cool" he smirked, leaning down to rest his back against the bed frame, looking so casual, yet so hot. Damn, was he a model? "I haven't worked with your horse though… I'm a bit apprehensive, I gotta admit. He seems really stubborn"

"He is…" she agreed calmly, feeling more comfortable around him as the seconds passed. "The farmer daddy bought Thunder from said he gave him a headache"

"I don't know…" Troy started slowly, frowning again, "if you should ride it then, Ella. I'm worried you get hurt"

"It's okay Troy" she assured him, "I can handle Thunder. I'm good at it"

Troy sighed, "I'm gonna believe in you, but I'll need your help when I train it" he leaned forward, his husky voice echoing in her ears pleasurably, "He needs to trust you if we plan for Thunder to accept your orders"

Gabriella grinned, "That won't be a problem. I can do it"

His grin mirrored hers and he patted her foot gently, "It's gonna be good working with you"

She nodded her head fervently and he laughed lightly at how adorable she looked. "You are so big Gabriella. My mom showed me the picture I was holding you when you were a baby. I can't believe you are 17 already"

"I'll be 18 in a month" she corrected, wanting to show maturity. The last thing she needed was Troy thinking of her as a baby. Fate couldn't be this cruel to her. "I'm not a baby anymore"

"I know" he smiled warmly, "I can see that. You grew up very well. You are a beautiful girl, Ella" he complimented and she blushed again. "Your mother would be proud of you"

"She'd be proud to see you too interacting" a manly voice caught their attention and she looked up at the same time Troy turned around, "I heard you saved my baby girl, Dr. Bolton"

"Saved?" he snorted in disbelief, "I only brought her inside, Victor"

Victor shook his head as he stepped inside the room, walking firmly towards Gabriella's bed, "I mean it Troy. Those two downstairs" he said, referring to Taylor and Ryan, "wouldn't know what to do with her. I'm glad you were close enough"

He shrugged his shoulders, "Uhm… your welcome then"

Standing up, he offered his seat for Victor, smiling one last time to Gabriella as he patted her father's back gently, "I'm gonna go back to my work. If you need anything don't hesitate to call, Ella"

Gabriella smiled, "Thank you for saving me Troy"

He laughed, "You two make me sound like a prince charming" he teased and Victor snickered, both of the men in the room oblivious to the teenager's reaction to Troy's joke.

Troy smiled politely and turned around, leaving the room rapidly. He closed the door behind him with a soft _thump_ and leaned against it, breathing deeply through his mouth. Why the hell he felt so weird around Gabriella all the time? Why acting so protective of her if he never acted like this before with anyone?

Okay, she seemed clumsy enough to get in trouble all the time and he craved to be near her to save her from danger. He could even pretend that acting like a prince charming was his normal behavior, but what was that compliment about her beauty? Why did he have to say it out loud? Damn, he needed to stop that. He was there to work, not to develop a crush on a girl that was too young for him.

"Focus, Bolton" he murmured to himself as he pushed off the door. Shaking his head and heading downstairs, Troy crossed the yellow walled living room and stormed through the back door that lead him back to the stud farm. Valencio was already there, holding Victor's brown horse safely near the fence. The latino man grinned when he jogged towards the animal again, nodding his head in greet.

"Hey doc. Is Miss Gabriella fine?"

"She's well" he assured confidently, "Victor's there with her"

The dark haired man nodded his head contently and patted the horse's back gently, "Ready to go back to work then?"

"Yeah…" he rubbed the back of his neck and nodded his head as well, "That's what I'm here for"


End file.
